a conversation about ltacs (long term acute care hospitals) - one of the fastest growing healthcare...
DESCRIPTION
Long term acute care hospitals (LTACs) are an important healthcare segment. There are over 400 facilities in the United States. They provide care for patients who need support following their initial, acute care hospitalization which can not be provided by rehabilitation or skilled care nursing facilities. This presentation provides a concise, detailed discussion of their functions, primary leaders and outlook for clinicians, payers, patients and marketing professionals. www.healthcaremedicalpharmaceuticaldirectory.com John G. BareskyTRANSCRIPT
“A Conversation About LTACs” (Long Term Acute Care Hospitals)
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“A Conversation About LTACs” Long Term Acute Care Hospitals
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What are Long Term Acute Care Hospitals?
• Long Term Acute Care Hospitals (LTACs) are healthcare facilities for patients who…
– Need an extended period of time to recover following their initial hospitalization
– Require a high degree of advanced care provided by doctors, nurses and other clinicians not provided by rehabilitative or skilled care facilities
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Why are LTACs necessary?
• Patients are being treated for more advanced conditions and undergoing more complex treatments so…
– Their recovery time is longer depending upon their age, comorbidities and leading procedure(s)
– Specialized care is required between their initial hospitalization and when they are sent home or to rehabilitation
– Payers see LTACs as more economical than acute
care hospitals for delivering care to extended
recovery patients
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What care may an LTAC provide?
• Daily physician evaluation
• Dialysis
• Initial rehabilitation
• Nursing care
• Nutritional therapy
• Ongoing diagnostic/laboratory testing/monitoring
• Pain management
• Post-surgical care/support
• Respiratory therapy
• Wound care Healthcare
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How long do patients stay in LTACs?
• There is no minimum or maximum length of stay
• It varies depending on the patient and their care needs
• A reasonable range is 18 to 35 days
• Comparatively, average stay at an acute care hospital is 3 to 7 days
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Can’t recovery be in an acute care hospital?
• LTACs are primarily focused on continuing the recovery of patients, acute care facilities have a focus on immediate care needs such as…
– Emergency units
– Intensive care units (ICUs)
– Imaging, X-Ray, Radiology
– Laboratory
– Pathology
– Surgical suites
– Trauma centers
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How many LTACs are there? • There are over 400 LTACs in the United States
– Many are independent operating facilities (freestanding)
– Some function as units of acute hospitals (“a hospital within a hospital”)
• While an LTAC may be located within the structure/property of an acute care hospital facility, their staff, care support and reimbursement is entirely separate from the operations of the acute care facility
• A moratorium on LTAC construction was put in place by the U.S.
government in 2007
– The moratorium ended at the end of 2012, a new run of
LTAC construction may ensue as the economy improves
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Who are some of the larger LTACs? • Acuity Healthcare
• AMG Integrated Healthcare Management
• Cornerstone Healthcare Group
• Dubuis Health System
• HealthSouth
• Kindred
• LHC Group
• LifeCare
• Select Medical
• Vibra
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Many of these companies operate assisted living,
long term care and rehabilitation facilities.
How is their reimbursement managed?
• To be considered as official LTACs, they go through a certification process –and so do some of their staff, such as physicians
• For LTAC Medicare patients, there are specific LTAC DRGs codes categorized as “LTC-DRGs”
– These codes accommodate the extended stays of typical LTAC patients
– Most LTACs accept standard commercial insurance/managed care plan payment from patients as well
• For LTAC physicians
– They bill under Part B for Medicare patients
– Commercial insurance/managed care plan
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What is the outlook for LTACs? • Healthcare professionals including doctors, nurses, pharmacists and therapists
will continue to be in high demand within the segment
• LTACs will continue to grow in number as the economy improves, baby boomers age and technology improves
• Their identity and function will be more familiar to consumers and patients as they further penetrate more marketplaces
• The specialized position they have within the continuum of care will increase the scrutiny of their reimbursement practices
• Pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers/marketers
will seek more opportunities in this healthcare segment
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Fifteen Metropolitan Healthcare Segments Are Profiled:
• Advertising/Marketing
• Assisted Living
• Behavioral
• Benefits
• CROs
• Dialysis
• Government
• GPOs
• Health Systems
• Insurance
• Nursing Facilities
• PBMs
• Pharmacies
• Surgical Centers
• Trade